Yemen: Measles threatens children as families struggle to reach vaccination and care

As measles puts additional pressure on health facilities in Yemen, Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) teams are seeing how long distances, alongside the transport costs of reaching healthcare facilities, can delay children’s access to vaccination and treatment. 

In a camp for displaced families in Tuban district, Lahj governorate, Zubaida Ali, 35, brought her two-year-old daughter, Asmaa, to be vaccinated against measles. She says that if the vaccination team had not come to the camp, her daughter would not have received the vaccine, as the nearest health facilities are far away and the family struggles to afford food, transport and other basic needs. 

Yemen is seeing renewed pressure from measles in 2026, continuing a pattern of recurrent outbreaks over recent years. According to provisional World Health Organization surveillance data, Yemen reported 11,354 measles cases between October 2025 and March 2026, the second-highest number reported globally during that period. 

Measles is highly contagious and can spread quickly where routine vaccination has been disrupted. In Yemen, many children still miss vaccination because of poverty, transport costs, long distances, displacement, misinformation and weakened basic healthcare services. Measles is a deadly disease, and can also lead to complications such as pneumonia, diarrhoea and eye infections, especially among malnourished children. It compromises the immune system, so children who have recovered from measles are still more vulnerable to other diseases. 

The impact is visible in the facilities MSF supports on Yemen’s west coast and in Lahj. 

At Mocha general hospital, in Taiz governorate, MSF-supported services recorded 314 patients with measles between January and April 2026, according to facility records. “One dose of measles vaccine provides protection, but children need two doses for full effect,” says Itta Helland-Hansen, MSF country coordinator in Yemen. “For families with very limited resources, the transport cost of travelling twice to a health centre can be a significant barrier. It is fully understandable to prioritise putting food on the table today over protection from a possible disease in the future. This is not a choice any family should have to make.” 

For medical teams, a measles outbreaks an emergency requiring space, staff, infection prevention measures, and follow-up care for children who may already be developing complications. 

To help manage the increase in patients needing admission and isolation, MSF increased isolation capacity at Mocha general hospital in April 2026. 

“We do not only need to treat the child in front of us,” says Abdulhakim Farhan, MSF’s project medical support on the west coast. “We must also protect other patients by ensuring suspected measles patients are safely isolated and closely monitor children who may already be suffering from complications. This adds a significant burden to our teams and places even greater pressure on an already strained health facility.” 

Measles is also increasing the strain on basic health centres, which are often the first point of care for families. 

At Mafraq Al Mokha health centre, in Mawza district, Taiz governorate, MSF-supported teams are seeing children with measles arrive from communities across three districts, including families who have been forced to leave their homes. New arrivals, displacement and changing population movement make it difficult to understand the real level of vaccination coverage. 

At Al-Khawkhah health centre, in Hodeidah governorate, teams are seeing a similar pattern: children arriving with measles from communities where many families face the same barriers to healthcare. In Taiz, the neighboring governorate, patient records at Al-Mafraq health centre in Mawza district also show significant measles cases among children. Serving communities across three districts, the facility often receives large numbers of patients in a single day, adding pressure on staff and services during measles outbreaks. 

Community outreach activities are one way to reduce these barriers by bringing vaccination services closer to children who may otherwise be missed. 

“With a highly contagious disease like measles, reaching herd immunity is key. At least 95 per cent of children need to be vaccinated to avoid outbreaks. This can be efficiently achieved when we visit the communities and provide vaccinations on the spot,” Itta Helland-Hansen explains. 

In April and May 2026, MSF supported Ministry of Health vaccination campaigns in Tuban district, Lahj governorate, and areas surrounding Mocha in Taiz governorate. Focusing on remote areas where access to healthcare is limited, more than 3,300 children were vaccinated in two weeks. 

Across these locations, MSF supports treatment, isolation, referrals, basic healthcare, health promotion and vaccination activities, while assisting the early identification of children with fever and rash and sharing information with caregivers on when and where to seek care. 

However, the scale of the needs exceeds what MSF can address alone. 

Recurrent measles outbreaks in Yemen point to wider gaps in routine vaccination, access to healthcare, health promotion and disease surveillance, exacerbated by reduced humanitarian funding. Sustained support is urgently needed so more children can be vaccinated and treated before they become severely unwell.